Internal-combustion engine



Aug. 20, 1929, J. R. QUINLAN ET AL I IHTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE Filed Aug. 21, 1926 I ll Q/M M M. W H. w w n a i 9 .1, m i MM Patented Aug. 20, 1929.

U'NITEDSTATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES B. QUDTLAN, 01E- PLEASANT RIDGE, AND LOUIS C. EVON, OF DETROIT, 4

' IICHIGAN.

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

Application filed August 21, 1928. Serial No. 130,740.,

The principal object of our invention is to provide, in connection with an internal combustion engine having a prime mover such as an electric motor, associated therewith, a

device in ctinnection with such motor for automatically engaging and disengaging the starting motor with some portion of the engine for the purpose of startlng the engme.

A further object of our invention 1s to provide an engaging device which may attached to the starting motor shaft 1n a position to co-act with the teeth on a moving part of the engine such as the fly wheel, and which will be so arranged that when current is ap- '15 plied to the starting motor, the engagin device will automatically engage the teet of the fly wheel, but which will, when the engine starts running under its own power, automatically become disengaged from the teeth of the fly wheel. Y 7

A further-object of our invention 1s to provide a 'elding connection between the pinion of t e engaging device and the connecting parts thereof on the starting motor shaft which will serve to cushion the shock of sharp engagement with the engine, and which will also allow the pinion to rotate mdependently of its connections and of the starting motor shaft, in case of engine backs. With these and other objects in view our invention consists in the arrangement, combination and construction of the various parts of our improved device, as described the specification, claimed in our claims and shown in the accompany ng drawings, m which:

Fig. 1 shows a side-elevatlon showing a portion of an internal combustion engine having a transmission associated therewith, a starting motor and an engaging device with parts broken away to better illustrate the construction.

Fig. 2 shows an elevation of our engaging device with certain parts broken away.

Fig. 3 is a view of the engaging devlce taken on line 3+3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is an elevationof the extendable sleeve forming part of the engaging device, with parts broken'away.

Fi 5 is a view of. the face of one of the clutc members of the engaging device taken on line 55 of Fig. 4.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, 10 is the cylinder block of an engine having a crank case 11 and a transmission housing 12. Within the transmission housing 12 is an engine fly wheel 13 having teeth 14 for engagement with the pinion operable by an electric starting motor 15. The starting motor 15 has a shaft 16 extended at right angles to the plane of the fly wheel 13-, and upon the shaft 16 is mounted and secured our improved engaging device which comprises a P1111011 18, having extending'therefrom in the direction of the starting motor 15 and surrounding the shaft 16, a sleeve 19. Within the sleeve 19 and around the shaft 16 is a coiled spring 20 which extends from sleeve 19 and contacts with the end of the housing 34 which partially encloses shaft 16. The side of the pinion 18 extending away from the starting motor 15 has its circumference reduced and splined as at 50 to carry the clutch member 21 which is formed with radial corrugations 51 forming its clutcn face. This clutch member 21 may if desired, be formed integral with pinion 18. A co-operating clutch member 22 which is also formed .with radial corrugations 52 on its clutch face is positioned upon the shaft. 16 with its corrugated face normally engaging and clutching the corrugated face of clutch member 21. Secured to clutch member 22 and extending at right angles to the plane thereof toward the end of shaft 16 are arms 23 which are adapted tofit into slots 24 of the sleeve 25. Upon the sleeve 25 is formed a collar 26, and between the collar 26 and the rear side of clutch member 22 and mounted upon the sleeve 25 is a coil spring 27, which normally holds the arms 23 in a position of partial insertion in slots 24. Enclosing collar 26 and spring 27 is a housing 28 which has its rear edges bent to clamp over collar 26, and is movable thereon, and which has its inner surface adjacent the edge of its opposite and threaded at 58 to receivethe periphery of clutch member 22 which is likewise threaded to fit therein. The rear portion of sleeve is constructed with longitudinally extending and spirally curved fingers 29 which engage and co-operate with longitudinally extending and spirally curved fingers formed upon sleeve 31 which is secured to the end of shaft 16 by the pin 32 and the key 33.

The pinion 18, the sleeve 19, the clutch members 21 and 22 and the sleeve 25 are all rotatable independent of and slidable on shaft 16.

Vhen the shaft 16 is actuated by the motor 15, the sleeve 31, being secured to the end of shaft 16, will rotate-therewith and will, by means of the curved fingers 30 acting upon curved fingers 29, force the sleeve 25 inward along shaft 16. The sleeve 25 will carry clutch face 52 against clutch face 51 and will force pinion 18 inward along the shaft until it engages with the teeth 14 of fly wheel 13. The sleeve 31 rotating with shaft 16 will by means of the engaging fingers 29 and 30, cause sleeve 25 to also rot-ate, which will carry with it clutch member 22, which, being engaged with clutch member 21, will cause pinion 18 to rotate and thus cause the rotation of the fly wheel 13. The front edges of the teeth on the pinion 18 are bevelled for easy engagement with the similarly bevelled teeth 14 of the fly Wheel 13. When the engine 10 is running, the fly wheel 13 will cause the pinion 18 to rotate on the shaft 16 at a greater rate than the shaft 16 is rotating, and will thus relieve the pressure of fingers 29 upon fingers 30 and cause the sleeve 25 to slide outward on shaft 16 until the curved fingers 29 and 30 are completely engaged. This action will permit the pinion 18 to withdraw from engagement with the fly wheel 13. The pinion 18 is forced from engagement with the fly wheel 13 by the expansion of spring 20 which has been previously compressed by the forward movement of sleeve 25 and pinion 18 along shaft 16, and spring 20 will also serve to insure the continued disengagement of pinion 18 from 'fl y wheel 13 y when the motor 15 is not being operated.

The spring 27 within the housing 28 enables clutch member 22 to retract toward collar 26 when the fly wheel 13 takes a reverse rotation because of a back-fire from the engine, and causes pinion 18 to rotate in a direction reverse to that of shaft 16 and sleeve 25.

The radially corrugated faces of clutch members 21 and 22 are thus caused by the reverse rotation of fly wheel 13 to slip over each other and so to permit the pinion 18 to rotate in a direction opposite to that of the shaft 16- and thus eliminate the possibility of damage to the engaging device which would otherwise be attendant upon the sudden reverse rotation of the fly wheel 13 when the engine back-fires.

The inertia of sleeve 25, clutch member 22 and pinion 18 in their running fit upon shaft 16 causes such members to be forced inward along shaft 16 for engagement of the pinion 18 with fly wheel 13 by the throw of the fingers 30 when the shaft 16 is suddenly rotated.

It is thus apparent that we have provlded an engaging device in connection with a starting motor and combustion engine which is of simple and cheap construction, and

avhich experiment demonstrates will endure continuous use over a long period of time without becoming worn out or broken.

It will be obvious that various changes may be made in the arrangement, combination and construction of the various parts of my improved device without departing from the spirit of my invention, and it is my lntention tocover by my claims such changes as may be reasonably included within the scope thereof.

What I claim is:

1. A device of the class described comprising a pinion gear rotatable and slidable on a shaft and carrying a radially corrugated clutch face on one side thereof, a clutch member rotatable and slidable on a shaft and having one side thereof radially corrugated for engagement with the clutch face on said pinion gear, combined driving and advancing means connected with said clutch member, and resilient means for normally maintaining said pinion and clutch face in 0011- tact with said clutch member.

2. In combination, an axially fixed shaft,

4 means for rotating said shaft, a pinion freely rotatable and axially slidable on said shaft provided with an end clutch face, a member rotatably and slidably mounted on said shaft and provided with anend clutch face engageable with the first mentioned clutch face, means secured to said shaft and engaging said member for causing axial movement of said member and pinion in one direction and limiting the rotation of said member on said shaft, and a single means for urging said clutch faces into engagement and moving said pinion axially in a direction opposite to the first mentioned direction.

3. In combination, an internal combustion engine, a flywheel operatively connected to said engine and having peripheral teeth, a starting motor having a shaft. extended ad jacent said flywheel, a floating pinion on said shaft engageable with said flywheel and having a radially corrugated clutch face thereon, means for driving said pinion comprising an extendable sleeve on said shaft having a radially corrugated clutch face secured thereto and engageable with said clutch -face on said pinion, a throw spring on said shaft. bearing against the free face of said pinion and normally tensioned to move said pinion out of engagement with said fly wheel upon retraction of said extendable sleeve carrylng said clutch face, and a resilient support for said clutch face on said sleeve for permitting slippage of said pinion when overloaded.

4. In combination, an internal combustion engine, a flywheel having teeth in its peripheral surface, operatively connected to said engine, a starting motor for said engine having a shaft extending adjacent said flywheel, a floating gear on said shaft adapted for occasional engagement with said flywheel, a spring on said shaft bearing against one side of said gear and normally tensioned to hold said gear out of engagement with said flywheel, a divided sleeve on said shaft, one division thereof being secured to the end of said shaft and having curved cam-like fingers extending inwardly along said shaft, the other division of said sleeve floating on said shaft and having at one end thereof curved cam-like fingers in slidable engagement with the fingers of said first division,

and having longitudinal slots in its other end and a circumferential collar between said cam-like fingers and said slots, a housing member slidably secured to said collar, a clutch element having a radially corrugated face secured in one end of said housing and having finger-sin slidable engagement with the slots in said second sleeve member, a spring in said housing positioned between said collar and said clutch element and normally tensione'd to hold the fingers of said clutch element in partial engagement with said slots, a second clutch element having a radially corrugated face secured to the side of said gear and adapted to engage said first clutch element.

JAMES R. QUINLAN. LOUIS o. EVON. 

